Fear and Loathing in 2185
by Dr.Garren
Summary: (OC) Booze, drugs, women, violence, all the pursuits of good men are still alive in this day and age. Candles are meant to be burned, whatever warmth taken by others is purely coincidental. But how long can this crazy trip last?
1. Prologue

Fear and Loathing in 2185.

* * *

The Citadel spans kilometres through the nebula, a floating teardrop hanging delicately in the balance of ever expanding space. Forty four point seven kilometres of space station and without star maps it would be impossible to find along with it's thirteen point two million residents. Some days it felt like you could open a door and see a real horizon, feeling the non artificial breeze overwhelm your senses. Cold, warm, it wouldn't matter. No door exists on a space station though, only a standardized ten pound per square inch airlock. Minimum. Imagine coming home after a drunken binge that started innocently enough in the presidium that has now pulled all of your weight down into the depth's of the wards. The last thing you want with a cracked red nose and headache is to be trapped inside pressurized tin can while a small breach in the ventilation systems floods your district or a systems error causes secondary power failure. All that happens is everyone looks down at their omni tools for a second before going back to whatever the hell they were doing. Sections are sealed but you can still walk around your building since every area has to come with it's own systems. Your ultra futuristic space station having technical problems? Don't worry! Just walk into any of the hundred other space stations contained within this one!

That's right, the citadels equivalent to weather are technical fuck ups.

So to summarize.

The Citadel, built by ancient aliens and found by the Asari, conquered by corporations who built up it's arms, ruled by a bureaucratic state named the council, and they still haven't found a way to clear out a hangover in less than the time it takes to get to work. So now you're late for work because you're trapped inside your tin can with only the food in your pockets and a splitting headache. All while this is supposed to be, wait for it, the future!

"Not that I believe in any sort of future, mind you."

The groan responding from the kitchen was reassuring, maybe because Caelso was inclined to agree with him. If only due to the similar hangover and the relative comfort of the fake metal floor, a harsh white light blossomed indicating the fridge was being opened. The only source of light that was active.

Still, while their opinions deferred on some matters it was nice to party with someone that could keep up. Even better for that particular acquaintance to have the same morning routine.

"Hey Cael wake up man we gotta go." Moving towards the kitchen arms outstretched to look where the eye's couldn't see while carefully placing each foot down to make sure anything stepped on was strong enough to take it. The subtle dance of the morning was all too familiar.

Now here was a man of true grit, Caelso Reminus. Despite his roman sounding name this fine specimen of Turian bone was more human than any I'd ever have the pleasure of meeting. No bullshit about honour or family, no rigorous training for him unless you count the red sand cup. A particular prize he had won during a rather uncivilized social event, however as all renowned trophies begin life being won, all must eventually be sold for hard currency. He lay in the Turian equivalent to a bachelors bathrobe. Head sticking inside the crisper drawer of an emotionless, silver monolith.

"The drawer better be somewhere in here I need to put some lemons-."

"They're all gone."

The mind processes for a moment. "What?"

"After you bought 'em we did suicide shots before hitting the strip." The condensation accumulating inside the drawer made seeing his face impossible, his dual toned voice sounded like he was in a fish bowl.

"Which one?"

"What?" Cael began the process of removing himself from the fridge unit.

"Which strip bar? Roxanne's? The Mint? Chora's for fuck's sake?"

"Why don't you go look outside and see now fuck off I need painkillers." Carapace had stabbed through tight spots on the bathrobe he was wearing, the turian scuttled past and found the bathroom.

"Were all out!" The bathroom was sealed before I could finish shouting, the last half echoed through the stark white light. Remembering the route taken before, I made my way back to where I woke up. It seemed like a nest was made out of all the towels and blankets in the apartment, each stained with any number of liquids. Not the worst place to sleep, surely. Omni-tool nowhere to be found I reach for the switch on the side of the wall. In an instant the window goes white blinding eye's and peeling away dead skin with a flourish of intensity. The light powerful enough to push me back onto the makeshift bed to the side, still blinded, still hungover, and still on this damn station.

But where?

Peaking open each eye one at a time before trying to look into another sun took time. But when I did…

"FUCK."

It was the strip of course, famous Silversun strip housing outlet stores for every major player of the galactic arms market. Most people in the galaxy only saw it in vid's, but it was also my first time seeing it too. It was easy to lose myself in the electric valley for a few moments, it's radiant blue's and colourful tourer's for a moment almost making it seem like they lived on an organic world.

Cael's head poked out of the bathroom displaying a look of casual indifference. "Relax man the sand's over here." His talons loosely holding a small baggie. "What's the deal with you?"

"Were at the strip. No, were facing the entire strip head on. You know what that means?"

He looked around the now bright room for a few moments. "This is not where we started."

A beat stuck in the moment like a pin before the two of them roared back in laughter, minutes past before it became too painful. But christ laughter really is the best medicine.

"C'mon Veeto" Cael's head disappeared back into the bathroom. "Lets get rid of this evidence then run."

The punchline to the joke now long gone at the sound of snorts coming from beyond, Veeto stood once again and made his way to the powder room. Each of them taking turns dipping their fingers into the baggie until it only had a slight red residue left. The high coming on strong after the ten minutes of constant inhalation, the two grabbed what items that could be identified and exited the room without talk.

Cael having found no clothes of his own besides the bathrobe opted to tighten the rope and pretend like nothing was wrong. I was pretty sure the only other item that was his (the soap's were in fact, complementary) were the turian equivalent to sunglasses. Black and smooth shaped specifically for his head, important for people such as ourselves to have. The only clothes I found were the ones I had on me. Indigo pants, brown boots, grey shirt and a black jacket, all twisted and rough from what looked like they were years after the wash date.

The best part of sand was the come up.

All of your hopes and dreams for what this new high could bring, the adventures possible with a simple step out the door. No arrangement of words could describe that sense of knowing that their is a time and a place for you in this world. It wasn't that your mind was expanded, everything just made sense.

That lasted about a few seconds until they reached the elevator.

Entering was fine, nobody was in the hallway on the way there but as the door satisfyingly closed with a swoosh the fear filled the silence it left behind. The confinement of it wasn't helping but what was truly disturbing was the sense of non motion. Living on a space station isn't like living on a planet. The gravity feels different, like a loose thread still clinging to the rope. One minute it's there, then next, poof.

*Ping*

The door opens revealing a rather straight faced asari, young, early two hundred's give or take.

"Uhm, it's okay.." The painful look of innocence no two hundred year old being should still have the capacity for reaches for the next elevator button. "I'm actually going..up." With that, the doors shut once again this time the smooth shut is much more relaxing.

"Damn how many floors does this place have?" Cael pulled out a neatly hand rolled creeper while asking.

"Hopefully enough to get rid of the smoke before ground floor arrives." While he patted his pockets for a light I reached into my jacket and pulled out one for him.

"Please, might get a few millionaires to calm the fuck down."

Each pull felt so smooth, the slow come on for powders mixes well with the fast action of inhalation. Each nerve felt less like an exploding biotic sun and more like, just, you know, like, a nice smooth line running across your vision. Transcending time and space to exist solely as a compass for your being.

"You think their are any camera's in that room? Or in this one?" Cael voice resonated uncaringly.

"Probably." I shrugged.

Out of the peace a hum rose to an insufferable decibel, the sound all around as an assault on every sense. What was worse, they appeared to descending at an observable rate.

"Holy fuck Veeto the elevator's fucked!" Cael searching for any hand hold possible but the elevators had none.

"We didn't do anything to it!" The fear now back, being smashed to death in a smoky tin can while tripping is not preferable. "Quick, we can fix it. Omni tool!" The hum so loud all we could do was shout.

"Where's yours?!"

"Probably up some stripper for fucks sake!"

*Ping*

As the elevator doors open smoke rolls out into the lobby, it looks alien to the neutral blue's and general sterility of the design. Almost immediately it dissipates into the automatic air filters without a sound leaving a half naked turian clinging to the walls and an obviously agitated human grasped onto his leg. The only thing that could have made it worse were if the people standing in said lobby had heard the shouts coming from the second floor.

Which is exactly what happened.

With a couple coughs and a few sniff's, the two of them walk out into the lobby. Pair's of eye's (or whatever Hanar have, mind eye...things) followed every step.

"What do we do Veeto, their looking right at us." His obvious panic held back to look as stoic as possible.

"Act casual."

And as a sun rises on a million distant worlds, so did the sun rise outside the entrance of the hotel on to the strip itself. The walkways filled with shoppers and tourists, criminals and honest folk alike going this way and that. The two stood outside and felt the artificial air as a the new day stretched out before them.

Strangers to everyone who walked by, one produces two cigarette's, lighting both and handing one to the other. No words said, none given.

"Today's going to be trouble, so were going to have to arm ourselves. To the teeth."

The look shared is small to anyone not looking, but it lives for a moment or two.

"Shit, it wouldn't be any other way." I laugh and then he follows too.

* * *

END PROLOGUE.

All Bioware property is their own.

OC is mine.


	2. Chapter 1

Fear and Loathing in 2485.

* * *

The walk back to the proper hotel lead Veeto and Cael straight down Silversun. The artificial morning to them was blinding, however standard citadel time displayed as 1400, the good citizens now winding down after a busy work day. Thoughts of leisure and freedom now too great to be ignored for the remaining hours of suffocation. When the shift ends the rush of endorphins begin, those first few sips of air when walking out would intoxicate them with thoughts of play. Maybe with enough cheap booze and azure one could be lucky enough to forget that it would begin again the next day.

On some distant habitation block sitting on the end of an arm, a stranger would wake up. Not that they would be strange in any sense of the word, in fact, their lifestyle may be in fact quite comparable to yours. The eye's would open revealing whatever dreams dreamt to be false, illusions of some fantasy unobtainable. Leaving the comfort of bedding with contempt and beginning whatever morning routine that tries, maybe succeeds, in lifting spirit. But while they pour their coffee and toast their bread a thought would interrupt the mind's process. The thought that maybe today, something good will happen. Unexpected love on the commute to work, a credit chit rolls down the walkway with more than today's pay, the office burns down along with every superior with it. With every grand expectation of adventure falling into their arms, nobody seems to remember the resilience of the day to day. Those freak accidents or lottery winnings are just that, freak. Nothing says it's your turn in the que for a lucky day. So when that person happens be slowed down by two junkies stumbling down the path they have been walking to work for years another thought goes through their head. _Get a fucking job streetscum._ While huffing and eventually shouldering past in a hurry to another eight hours.

That was the appeal of the drugs Vitto and Cael enjoy. No working class citizen would ever understand how right and true the world could feel, while also understanding how deep the rabbit hole goes. For them the choice between swimming in calm waters or surfing massive waves was obvious. Choose danger, risk, adventure, while throwing all sense of fear of the unknown aside.

** Playing a game we couldn't possibly win, till the end. i.**

* * *

Red Cliff was a second tier dining establishment for most biologies on the third level of the Ciara markets. It's medium to high end price point suckered many patrons into a false belief of elegance or class, black and silver uniforms, and the somewhat impressive fake dark red leather seats almost made it believable. The only thing holding them back from competing in the big leagues was the non-existent waiting list. _Or the food, Veeto thought._

Cael was sitting next to Veeto on the right, his bathrobe now replaced with a crisp white one when stopped off at their real hotel. When questioned about clothing by the waiter he replied in silence while Veeto calmly explained that the table in question was reserved by very important people that wouldn't like it if their were any problems with their guests. One quick call later and the very waiter denying access quickly lead them to the table.

"Would you two like anything to drink while you wait?" She had said.

"I'm thinking a couple hanging stars to start and then bring out some of that salarian dish, the one with all the miniature eggs, you know. After that just a fresh blue angel every six minutes till you run out of mix."

She looked back up from his notes to Veeto with a look of slight bewilderment.

"Oh, please." Seemingly satisfied enough to end that conversation she turned to Cael.

"And you sir?"

Cael returns a cold hard stare that makes the waitor visibly nervous, a common occurrence and quite necessary in the progression of getting to know him.

"Ryncol." The word rolled out of his mouth, spilling out like gravel. His eye's locked in a predatory fashion to the poor employee, the moment stood much longer then it should have before he smiled awkwardly then turned.

_ Ah shit were going to need her._

"Hey" only a small whisper as I grab her sleeve. "Just a game of chicken eh? Don't forget those blue angels." She stares back at me like I'm the opposite of civility or something before leaving.

"Cael if you scare off one more goddamn waiter I swear Ill subject you to those art vid's you love so much."

"You're always telling me I should take more interests in your hobbies." He deadpans while obviously pretending to read the menu.

* * *

"Hi I have a reservation under the name Dasi for seventeen hundred?

"Your guests arrived two hours early." The accusatory tone was not a good sign, that, and the fact that the attendant hadn't looked down to check the name.

"Are they still here?" She tried adding a curt, professional tone to undercut his impoliteness, but the level of distress on the man's face made it come out sounding more like concern.

With an audible sigh of exasperation he turned and started walking into the dining area, not looking back to see if she was following. "We moved them to a private room after it was made clear they couldn't leave without you."

Airana made note of how far back this room was, they passed the original table near the front. It seemed the restaurant's excitement of showing off top dollar dinner guests to anyone passing by outside backfired spectacularly, as the table itself was in several pieces.

Subtle splashes of alcohol and god know's what else left stains on it's top, most likely from before it was left in a heap. _I hope that doesn't come out of my retainer, wonder if I'll have to atleast sign something for that…_

Turning left she was lead down a hallway containing the private rooms, each one fitted with thick sound proof doors. It's design reeked of a taste coming from crime vid's, elegant white and cherry wood red accent's on the dark grey metal walls. It inspired drama, a life of intrigue and danger. _Only long enough till anyone see's the dirt in the corners, or the cheap lighting casting unflattering shadows for the colour. The details matter, something everyone stands for but seems to forget._

The attendant stopped in front of a door with the number seven holographically displayed in blue on the upper top half. The attendant pulls a datapad from the inside of his jacket and looks it over.

"The bill for the table, chairs, whatever damage they've done to the inside of that room, the sixteen drinks between them, the seven orders of salarian drim scheln, and the money owed to the server who went and bought them cigarettes. Plus gratuity." The last part was added with a hint of smugness. "Do give it to your boss or whoever runs you all." He holds the datapad out and she pauses for a moment before reluctantly taking it. Without waiting for a response the attendant walks back down the hallway leaving Airana alone in front of her assignment.

She turns toward the door.

_ Okay calm down, this guy can't be that bad. Just raise your right hand up to the panel as soon as you're ready._

…

_ Any time now._

…

* * *

"There you go buddy big whiff, that's it."

After making some horrible wheezing sounds he came back up from holding his head between his legs. "So what did you do?" He said while stuttering through coughs. Seeping undertones of stress crept along when he spoke, Looking like he was at the point where all questions needed answers, any reality that existed without was absurd. _The first time feeling all of the connections can be overwhelming, let's slow it down abit…_

"Only thing we could do, pretend we were plain clothes detectives in charge of keeping the place secure overnight. Helps that we had a uniform with us at the time, I forget his name, turian though. Never saw him after that."

"Wonder where he went." Cael gruffly added while popping open another capsule and raising it to his nose.

The server, which his name turned out to be Novus, was procured somewhere in the time staff pushed the two of them into this private room. Maybe it was Veeto, maybe Cael, neither remember and neither think it's important. However one of them saw what made Novus important and that was the certain quality of loneliness seen when walking down any which direction. His sadness was wandering and aimless, frequently lost in fantasy about people or places or things all of which were inaccessible. To stare into the mind bubble floating around his head and see his perception, his view of the world. Not mind reading, not insanity, just observation.

The table is pushed up against the window vertically, the tablecloth taken by Cael, after complaining that it was cold. The lights were off as well save for the soft bleed in of a neon rainbow coming from displays around the room bathing all three of them in changing colours and shadow. They had sat for what felt like hours in a triangle in the farthest corner of the room, each taking turns snorting, smoking, and all around consuming varieties of colorful substances. The impulses to fight, to scream and smash the place up more now quelled to the quiet peace of deep introspection. Veeto cherished the peace for one moment longer then turned to Novus.

"You want to know the truth now?" He says while sliding over to Novus and pulling his head close to make sure he'll hear his next words.

"The truth." Said less like a question and more as a thank you for bringing the topic up.

Cael chuckles quietly in the backyard but Novus is too spaced to hear, he's seen the act before. _Veeto, the master of infecting others with his thoughts. He saves it till your in your most vulnerable headspace, then moves like a surgeon, implanting words. He had been doing it for so long and Novus was an easy target, his low tolerance has left him with a blank page in his head. Easy prey._

"Consider the following."

He licks his lips softly and savours the look of concentration before continuing.

"Imagine the course of people lives as walking through an ever changing landscape that is formed by the sum of thought and emotion entirely. The beautiful fields and sun, crossing rivers and mountains, bright nights and rainy days, all of these things represent what you feel about all things in your life. When you wander through this metaphysical plane, at some time or another you find the salt flats. The endless waist stretching farther than you've ever seen before, it doesn't matter where you are and you could just walk away. To the ones who find themselves walking farther and farther inside, with enough endurance, they find something. A hole. Completely black and devoid of bottom it stretches on, past any reason. This is the void and you have found it, but what now? Do you look? Stare into it as it stares back. The people that return tell stories about how they made the journey, or are forever changed by looking. But the brave, the true...jump."

As Novus turns to look at Veeto, a blinding light smashes into all three. A wave of brilliant light, _that felt quite appropriate to the story. _

Standing in the threshold was Airana Dasi, or as the pair would know her as, the Asari outside the elevator earlier in the morning. Not that they specifically remembered the altercation, as the following words out of Cael's mouth were quote. "I didn't know this place would actually send a prostitute."

* * *

Airana stares at the huddled circle, really wishing she hadn't picked the wrong profession.


	3. Chapter 3

Fear and Loathing in 2485.

* * *

"Do you have to be depressed to write a sad song, do you have to be in love to write a love song, if so who is _Voss River _really about?"

The skycar ducked and weaved through the express passenger traffic, the speed limit seemed to not matter to Cael who was driving. Each reverberation through the metal frame sounded angry and it's electronic shouting from the console expressed worry.

"Gun it man it's a long drive, put your fucking foot down."

_Not the answer I was looking for. _Airana sighed and lowered her omni tool, not that holding it close actually mattered as the recording software was at least mid range. On screen was her assignment in full:

CONDUCT INTERVIEW

AMERY HIETT, KNOWN ALIAS VEETO

MEETING: RED CLIFF, CIARA MARKETS, ARM FOUR NUMBER 532990

TIME 1400 LOC

MOST LIKELY NOT TRAVELING ALONE, MOST LIKELY WILL NOT COOPERATE, DON'T CREATE MORE MESS FOR LEGAL.

_I'm so glad they recognise my work enough to address me on such a deep, personal level. _

"People drive in such an unintuitive nature." Cael looks back from the controls as he says this, "You only need to slow down if you're about to hit something that will actually break the car." The jarring sound of another skycar flying what felt like inches away was enough for him to turn back to the controls. _Just try not to think about how each part was designed and produced by the lowest bidder to meet the bare minimum requirements of general safety. Also the inebriated driver._

"Where are we going?" _That would be nice to know, maybe I'll get to the real questions at some point…_

"Remember the guy who walked us through the mineral plains on Ageko? Krogan, didn't say a word the whole four days.' Veeto shouts this out to Cael as the hum of the engine increases to an audible level. "He came to the citadel a few weeks ago and gave me a ring, thought we should pay him back with a visit."

_Does he know I'm here? _

"Wait, what happened on Ageko?"

The traffic rules of flying skycars are generally laxed as most have built in safeties, that, and everybody can move in three dimensions so there really is no need for floating control lights. If a car decides to ascend and one happens to be above in it's path, safeties engage. So while seeing a skycar booming towards your position may be a bit disturbing, it's not out of the ordinary. But when Ciara looks left out of the window only to see the front of a matte black skycar within single heartbeats of impacting, you just have to close your eyes and-

* * *

COUGH COUGH

_Seeing blue when that happens isn't good, is it._

"CAEL, YOU ALIVE BUD?" The hoarseness of Veeto's voice wasn't a good sign either, he could feel the black smoke coating the inside of their lungs.

"AUIHGKCCCCKKK"

"WHAT?!"

"I think that means he's alive." _The feminine voice, what's her name._

"ASSCOCK" _Aaah, thats better._

The car was a wreck. The impact pushed it laterally into a corner office of the eighty fourth floor, then through each office with a window view till it finally lost momentum on the corner office on the other side. Veeto and Airana had pulled him out of the wreckage and propped him on the wall looking all the way down the carnage. Sparks popped off of superheated portions of metal, smoke poured out of the car into the building, the skycars flying outside sounded like roaring wind.

_Was I driving that fast?_

"Wh-" COUGH _More blood, great. _"I hope that car was insured."

"I don't think they cover our kind of situation." Veeto holds out a hand and Cael gladly accepts. Veeto looked bad, he was covered in red from a million small cuts. From what he could tell nothing was missing though.

"Could someone tell me what the fuck that was all about?"

"You were driving, I knew your hate for skyscrapers and well being would eventually lead to this but not with an innocent bystander on board."

"Ill try harder to kill just you next time, _Veety_"

"So you didn't know who that was?" Airana was standing somewhat out of place next to the both of them, her outfit was stained in red and blue at the hands, and forearms, but strangely enough she looked fine everywhere else.

"You saw something?" _Veeto_ _looking like a maniac fresh from the killing fields wasn't going to help this query, but feeling every plate almost fall off each move is incentive enough to let it play out. To her credit, she seems unfazed._

"Black car coming right for us, that's all I caught."

"Anyone inside?"

She pauses for a moment before answering, "I don't remember, shouldn't we be making our way to the hospital?"

"Or at least out of the crime scene?." _Mmmm, here comes that adrenaline. Nothing better. _

Veeto looks appreciatively to Cael as he says this. "Now this is why I keep him around." With a snap he begins moving towards the undestroyed section of the office.

"Wait! What about the car? Police reports, insurance claims, aren't you both at least a little bit worried that you almost just died?"

Veeto already disappeared through the doorway, sirens were distant in the background and yells were growing louder from inside the building. Airana looks at Cael, the two of them now waist deep in the smoke. Artificial light piercing through leaving only enough light to see it reflected back in each others eye's.

"Leave it to the professionals." He looks to the driver seat then back down the shredded floor one more time as he says this. "And try not to think about it. Coming or not?" He turns and starts following Veeto's path.

Airana watches him disappear as the smoke get's even thicker.

* * *

All of her senses shut down as one thought creates a million different scenarios that lead to the same place except for one. Without looking back and ten steps later, the past disappears into the inaccessible. The only motivation is that the decision has already been made.


End file.
